Reversible fluid-motor.



No. 784,482. PATENTED MAR. 7, 1905.

H A. DUO, JE-

REVERSIBLE FLUID MOTOR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 20, 1903.

2 SHEBTB-BHBET lv [NV NTOR No. 784,482. PATENTED MAR. v, 1905.

1 H. A. BUG, JR. REVERSIBLE FLUID MOTOR.

AAAAAAAAA OH'IILED AUG 28, 1903.

WIT 8155.-

EM I

UNTTED STATES Patented March '7, 1905.

PATENT FFICE.

REVERSIBLE FLUID-MOTOR- SPECIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 784,482, dated March '7, 1905.

Application filed August 26,1903. Serial No. 170.859.

To a 2071 0721 it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY A. DUO, Jr., of

Charleston, in the county of Charleston and This invention is an improved reversible elastlc-fluid motor, its ob ects being to sunplify the construction of such motors, render them capable of acting with equal efliciency running in either direction, to provide improved reactionary surfaces for the fluid-jets to impinge upon, to enable the water of condensation to be utilized as an impact or reacting surface, and. in short, to obtain the greatest practical efiiciency from elastic fluid in a compact reversible engine.

The invention Will be clearly understood from the following description of the engine illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which show one embodiment thereof; but I do not consider my invention restricted to the particular form and arrangement or combination of parts shown in the drawings, referring to the claims following the description for concise summaries of the essential features and combinations of parts for which I wish protection.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly broken, of the complete engine.

Fig. 2 is a vertical central section there-- through. Fig. 3 is a detail section illustrating a modification of construction. Fig. A is a view showing one arrangement of impact or reactionary surfaces. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view showing another arrangement thereof. Fig. 6 is a detail side view of one of the projections shown in Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a detail section showing another arrangement of reactionary surfaces. Fig. 8 is a reduced side view of Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of parts shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 10 is a diagrammatical view illustrating the action of the fluid. Fig. 11 is a detail view of one group of jet-heads.

Theanain shaft A is journaled axially in an inclosing cylindrical casing B. the front side of which may be removable to permit access to interior parts. On this shaft A within the casing is mounted a wheel or disk O, having a deep peripheral flange 0, to the outer side of which is attached an annular ring C, which altogether form an annular trough O, concentric to shaft A. \Vithin this trough O are arranged a series of reactionary surfaces or impact-surfaces, against which the motive fluid is directed from suitable jetheads, hereinafter described. As shown in Fig. 1, four sets of reactionary surfaces are employed. These are arranged on the inner surface of curved plates I), which are located in trough O with their concave faces inward, and on these concave faces are projections (I, (see Figs. 5 and 6,) which are preferably arranged in quincunx order, so that the fluid passing between any two adjacent projections will ii-npinge against another, and so on. Moreover, these projections are swelled centrally, as in Fig. 5, so that the fluid in passing between them will be greatly compressed by the contraction of the walls of the passage, as will be obvious from the drawings. It will be observed also that a narrow space is left between the back of the plates 1) and the bottom or inner circumference of the trough O for a purpose hereinafter explained.

As shown in Fig. 1, four groups of jetheads E are employed. Each jet-head is centrally mounted on a hollow stub-shaft F, which has two adjacent ports ff in its side. The jet-head has two oppositely-extending tubular portions (1 (1', the former of which when the jet-head is rocked into the positionindicated in Fig. 1 comnmnieates with port f, .portf being closed. In this position the wheel O and shaft A will be driven to the right. By rocking the jet-heads on their supports so that portions w will be brought into communication with ports f portsf will be closed, and the wheel and shaft will then be driven to the left or reversed. The jet-heads may be rocked, so as to accomplish the reversal of the engine in any suitable manner. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the jet-heads have segments meshing .with a pinion on, a

shaft J, extending through the head of the rwith. -35

casing and provided with a hand-wheel for l any other matter in motion, when abruptly aroperating it; but this is merely indicative of a possible construction, and I do notlimit myself to any particular mechanism for shifting or reversing the jet-heads. Neither do I restrict myself to the employment of the specific construction of jet-heads shown nor to the specific manner of mounting same within the casing, the important characteristic of this feature of my invention being that the jetheads shall be mounted stationaril y withinthe rotatable trough or wheel and also that the jet-heads be capable of reversing positions, so as to drive the wheel right or left,- as desired.

When steam is used as a motive fluid, the

water of condensation may escape from the' easing into the exhaustpipe G, through which the steam passes into a condenser H, and the water of condensation can be conducted to the suction-pipe 2' of a centrifugal pump 1, arranged on shaft H and forced to any point of delivery. A pipe J may also be arranged to conduct water from the pump through the condenser.

In Figs. 1 and 2 I have shown simply one annular channel or trough C Fig. 3 indicates how a number of such troughs may be formed by bolting flanged plates C to the wheel C between it and plate 0. In this construction impact or reactionary surfaces, such as described or of other desirable constructions, may be arranged in each trough, suitable jet heads being provided to coact there- As shown in Fig. &, the reactionary surfaces are provided with parallel undulating ribs K, so that fluid injected thereagainst or flowing thereover will be alternately deflected right and left and measurably compressed and expanded alternately in an advantageous manner.

In Figs. 7 8, and 9 the reactionary surfaces are provided with double-curved projecting ribs L, which extend diagonally across the path of the fluid and will cause a compression thereof between the ribs and adjacent sides of the trough. In these figures the ribs L may be centrally stifi'ened by a connecting bar or ring L as shown. These reactionary surfaces or others of like nature are arranged on the inner surfaces of the plates D and may also be arranged on the inner circumference of the flange C or the bottoms of troughs C The flange C may be extended inwardly as far as the dotted line shown in Fig. l to deepen the trough, if desired. All the reactionary surfaces shown have the common capacity or function of causing a compression or guiding 0f the fluid flowing therepast without directly and abruptly stopping its movement on changing its direction. It is well known that more power can be derived from elastic fluids by gradually guiding their flow without abruptly stopping or changing their direction than can be 1 realized from direct abrupt impact thereof against opposed surfaces. Elastic fluids, like rested their energy is largely converted into heat and. lost, whereas by gradually changing the direction of their flow, as by alternately constructing and enlarging their channels, much of the power due to their high velocity is imparted to the guiding-surfaces. All the reactionary surfaces shown have the important functions of gradually absorbing the impact of the steam or other elastic fluid, no matter in which direction the engine be driven.

Another important feature of my invention is the capability of utilizing water of condensation or other fluid in the trough C as a reactionary medium. Supposing the trough to be almost filled with water, (which will remain therein by centrifugal action,owing to the high speed of the wheel (1,) the fluid is jetted thereagainst and tends to drive the body of water rapidly around within the rotating wheel or,

trough in other words, to rotate the body of fluid in the trough faster than the troughitself moves, this body or ring of fluid presents a semiyielding or resilient impact-surface, as shown by dotted lines, Fig. 10, near to the jets and a continuous reactionary surface interrupted only by parts D or their equivalents. When steam is not used, a body of fluid can be supplied to the trough for the purpose described. The high speed of the confined body of water or fluid tends to increase the momentum and speed of the wheel, and the power transmitted to the fluid is further transmitted to the wheel by the action of the fluid against the outer surfaces of the parts D, and in trying to flow between such surfaces and the trough the location of the parts D in the trough reduces the waterway. Consequently the rapidly-rotating Water acts most powerfully against the parts D and walls of the trough at these constricted places. This propelling or forcing action of the fluid may be augmented by placing within the bottom of the troughs reactionary surfaces-such as shown in Figs. L to 9, for example.

Having thus described my invention, what I therefore claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent thereon, is-

1. In an elastic-fluid motor, the combination of an annularly-arranged rotatable series of reactionary surfaces adapted to constrict the flow of the fluid, and a series of relatively stationary elastic-fluid jets within the orbit of the series of reactionary surfaces adapted to direct fluid against said reactionary surfaces, substantially as described.

2. In an elastic fluid motor, a rotatable trough, reactionary surfaces therein adapted to constrict the flow of .the fluid, and a relatively stationary series of elastic-fluid jets adapted to direct fluid against said reactionary surfaces, substantially as described.

3. In an elastic-fluid motor, the combination of an annular rotatable trough, a series of reactionary surfaces therein provided with means for guiding and constricting the flow of the fluid, and a series of relatively stationary jets within the trough adapted to direct fluid against the reactionary surfaces, substantially as described.

4. In an elastic-fluid motor, the combination of a rotatable trough adapted to contain a body of fluid retained therein by centrifugal action and provided with surfaces adapted to constrict the flow of the fluid, and a series of elastic-fluid jets adapted to direct fluid against the surface of the body of fluid, to rotate the latter within the trough, and cause said fluid to rotate the trough,substantially as described.

5. In a reversible elastic-fluid motor, the combination of an annularly-arranged rotatable series of reactionary surfaces adapted to constrict the flow of fluid, and a series of relatively stationary elastic-fluid jets located with-.

in the orbit of the series of reactionary surfaces adapted to direct fluid against said reactionary surfaces,and means for shifting said jets so as to reverse the direction of rotation of the reactionary surfaces, substantially as described.

(5. In a reversibleelastic-fluid motor, a rotatable trough, reactionary surfaces therein adapted to constrict the flow of fluid, a rela tively stationary series of elastic-fluid jets adapted to direct fluid against said reactionary surfaces, and means for shifting said jets so as to cause the trough to rotate in either dircction desired, substantially as described.

7. In an elastic-fluid motor, the combination of an annular rotatable trough, a series of reactionary surfaces therein provided with means for guiding and constricting the flow of the fluid, a series of relatively stationary jets within the encircling trough adapted to direct fluid against the surfaces, and means for shifting said jets so as to reverse the direction of rotation of the trough, substantially as described.

8. In a reversible elastic-fluid motor, the

combination of a rotatable trough adapted to contain a body of fluid retained therein by centrifugal action and provided with means to constrict the flow of the fluid, a series of elastic-fluid jets arranged within the encircling trough adapted to direct fluid against the surface of the body of fluid, to rotate the latter within the trough, and cause said fluid to rotate the trough, and means for shifting the direction of said jets, to reverse the rotation of the trough, substantially as described.

9. In a fluid-motor, the combination of a shaft, a wheel mounted thereon having a pcripheral trough, a series of impact or reactionary surfaces arranged within the trough and adapted to constrict the flow of the fluid, a series of jet-heads located within the encircling trough but indept-mdent thereof and fixed relatively thereto, and means for admitting steam or elastic fluid to said jet-heads, substantially as described.

10. In a fluid-motor, the combination of a shaft, a wheel mounted thereon having a pcripheral internally-opening trough; a series of ended jet-heads mounted within the trough but independently thereof, means for supplying elastic fluid to said jet-heads; with a series of reactionary surfaces within the encircling trough but above the bottom thereof, and series of fluid-guiding surfaces within the trough, all substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

11. In a reversible fluid-motor, the combination of a shaft, a wheel mounted thereon having a peripheral trough, a series of impact or reactionary surfaces arranged within the trough, a series of oscillating jet-heads located within the encircling trough but independent thereof and fixed relatively thereto, means for admitting steam or elastic fluid to said jetheads, and means for rocking said jetheads so as to reverse the direction of the jets, and consequently reverse the direction of retation of the wheel, substantially as and for the purpose described.

12. In a reversible fluid-motor, the combination ofa shaft, a wheel mounted thereon having a peripheral internally-opening trough, a series of oscillatory double-ended jet-heads mounted on hollow spindles within the encir- HENRY A. DUO, Jn.

In presence of An'rnUR 1C. DOWELL, J Aims It. MANsvInLo. 

